Gators linebacker Ryan Stamper leaving his mark

Wednesday

GAINESVILLE - Ryan Stamper isn't going to be a first-round NFL Draft pick like several of his Florida teammates, but he's perhaps the defense's most indispensable player.

The 6-foot-2, 232-pound fifth-year senior plays every linebacker position, has a knack for diagnosing plays, and is every bit the leader as All-American linebacker Brandon Spikes.

"He takes his job very seriously," UF defensive coordinator Charlie Strong said. "He studies the game and is one of the most dependable guys on our defense. I would go as far as to say that of all our defensive players he's probably been the most consistent.

"I know this. I feel really good when I know Stamper is out there on the field. He gets the guys lined up. The players look to him for that leadership role. It's so funny when he's not out there, like in practice when I rotate guys, and how the guys [on the field] will be like, 'Where's Stamper?' "

He's usually around the ball. The former First Coast High School standout leads Florida with 64 tackles and has 21/2 sacks, one pass breakup and two interceptions. He has 109 tackles in the past two seasons and has started 22 of the past 25 games. Not bad for a guy the coaching staff discovered by accident.

UF coach Urban Meyer was looking at a recruiting list shortly after being hired in December 2004 and came across Stamper's name. The Times-Union's 2004 Defensive Player of the Year was committed to Auburn.

"I said, 'Why is this guy going to Auburn? He's right there in Jacksonville,' " Meyer remembered. "We watched video off the Internet on the [computer] screen. I got in the car the next day and drove and met his mom."

UF was the only state school to recruit Stamper, and his mother, Gloria Westcott, convinced him he'd be better off in Gainesville than in Alabama.

"A lot of players are like, 'If a school recruits you late, it's kind of like they didn't really want you at first,' " Stamper said. "So I was kind of sold on [that] Florida didn't want me at first. Auburn wanted me this whole time. But my mother was like, 'You'll be close to home,' and things like that.

"I decided to come to Florida. Best decision I made in my life."

Stamper redshirted in 2005 and played little in 2006 and 2007, but he had a breakout season in '08. He made 45 tackles, recorded one sack, and recovered two fumbles while starting 11 of the 12 games in which he played (he missed two with an ankle injury).

That's pretty good considering Stamper is too slow to play linebacker. That's what Meyer said, anyway.

"He is too slow to play linebacker," Meyer said. "But he's just a great player. Our players love him and our coaches love him, as well."

Safety Will Hill agreed with Meyer. Stamper is too slow - off the field.

"He has game speed," Hill said. "If you're in a game it's a whole different mentality. If you just run the clock in the 40, yeah, he's slow. But if there's a ball on the field and he's going after a player, he's far from slow."

One play in the BCS National Championship Game against Oklahoma showcased Stamper's value - and proved Hill correct. The Sooners were threatening to cut into UF's 14-7 lead late in the third quarter and were facing a third-and-1 at the UF 28-yard line. The Gators were in their joker package - three linemen, three linebackers, five defensive backs - on the previous play and Strong didn't have time to substitute his short-yardage defense because of Oklahoma's fast-paced offense.

Stamper took charge.

"I kind of had a feeling what they were running," Stamper said. "I was on the outside and I was supposed to stay on the outside but there was no one in the inside so I just told [cornerback] Janoris Jenkins, 'Get outside because I'm about to shoot inside.'

"I shot inside and they tried to block me but I just came in inside - I guess they thought I was coming outside - and made the play."

"If we didn't stop them there, there's no telling how the ball game would have gone," Stamper said.

He said "we" and not "I," which is another of the things that endears him to his coaches and teammates. Especially his teammates, who love to tease him because he's been at Florida since 2005.

"We call him Old Man Stamp," Hill said.

Quarterback Tim Tebow said they call him Dad, too - which is funny considering Stamper is only six months older than Tebow. Both are 22.

Stamper laughs about that, but he knows his teammates respect him. It's hard for them not to, because they see what he does on the field. Stamper might not receive as much attention as Spikes and several other potential first-round draft picks, but he makes as many plays as they do.

They might not be as spectacular, but they are important, Strong said.

"He plays a very quiet game, but at that end of the game on the stat sheet there's eight tackles, four assisted tackles, a fumble recovery, a tipped pass, a [quarterback] pressure," Strong said. "All these numbers add up and you're like, 'Wow, he had a big game.' You feel his presence."

michael.dirocco@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4500

Follow Michael DiRocco on Twitter @mjdirocco.

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